This invention relates to an improved body armor insert which protects the wearer from bullets.
The use of protective body armor formed of ballistic cloth woven from aramid fibers is known in the art. This cloth protects the wearer from bullets. Commercial cloth is available that is made from an aramid fiber sold by DuPont under the trademark Kevlar.
Protective body armor formed of ballistic cloth made from polyethylene is also known in the art. This cloth also protects the wearer from bullets. Commercial cloth is available that is made from a polyethylene fiber sold by the Allied Fibers division of Allied Signal Technologies under the trademark Spectra.
The protection afforded by both the aramid cloth and the polyethylene cloth depends upon the number of plies of the cloth and thus can be selected to provide the required protection.
In forming a protective body armor insert there are a number of parameters to consider. Of primary importance, the insert must protect the user from the penetration and impact of a bullet.
Different degrees of protection are provided to protect a wearer from different types of weapons and accordingly protective armor is classified into different protection levels. Additionally, since the protective armor is intended for frequent and long periods of use it is important to make it as comfortable to wear as possible. Weight and flexibility, along with material feel are factors that impact on wearer's comfort. Since additional layers of material add both additional weight and protection, in forming a protective insert a trade-off must be made between protection level and comfort. If a protective device is not sufficiently comfortable it will not be used and thus will afford no protection.
Accordingly it is the major purpose of the present invention to provide a body armor insert which meets a predetermined standard of bullet protection and which is light weight and more comfortable than prior inserts meeting the same standard of protection.
A related purpose of this invention is to provide such a body armor insert which is relatively flexible and which has an acceptable wearing feel.